


Remembrance Stars

by allthebeautifulthings9828



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Bunker Fic, Castiel in the Bunker, Christmas, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Tree, Domestic Castiel/Dean Winchester, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fallen Castiel, First Christmas, Human Castiel, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Castiel/Dean Winchester, M/M, POV Dean Winchester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-12
Updated: 2013-12-12
Packaged: 2018-01-04 09:55:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1079581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allthebeautifulthings9828/pseuds/allthebeautifulthings9828
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean finds Castiel hanging stars on a Christmas tree in the bunker. He watches for a while until he realizes the stars have a much deeper meaning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Remembrance Stars

A few weeks before Christmas, Dean rolls out of bed around lunchtime (hey, the hunt went on way too long last night) and hearing metal drag across the floor draws his attention. He puts on his bathrobe and grumbles his way to the main hall of the bunker where he finds Cas climbing a ladder. He's put up a Christmas tree even bigger than Sammy, though Dean has no idea how he managed to bring it home.

"Hello, Dean," the one-time angel says without looking back. He simply feels Dean in the room while he opens a new box of ornaments. "Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, but I needed to get up anyway," he replies, stepping closer. "Where'd you get all this?"

"Sam helped me. It took some convincing but he's rather understanding when it comes to me having new experiences as a human man. I don't believe he enjoys holidays much."

"Not really," Dean mumbles, choosing not to elaborate.

Leaning a shoulder against the doorway, Dean finds himself curious and observing Castiel as he stretches a long arm to the tree. A gold star dangling from a hook is carefully placed near the top. More stars follow in time, cascading down toward the bottom of the tree, each being placed with the utmost care.

But as Castiel slips down a few rungs of the ladder, Dean gets a better look at the gold stars. Some of the stars have swirling patterns of gold glitter, others have stripes, still others with polka dots, and many with nothing decorative at all. He approaches the impressive tree and realizes Castiel has inscribed Enochian words on them. Maybe Dean was intruding, he thinks carefully to himself. Maybe Castiel needs some privacy. He starts to back away.

"They're remembrance stars," Castiel says quietly. He climbs down from the ladder and tugs on the sleeve of his obnoxiously bright blue sweater (he collects so many of those damn things). Examining his work brings him closer to Dean. "When an angel is killed in battle, God creates a new star in the universe as a memorial. Or he did until he disappeared. Many angels were killed in the fall, you know."

"Yeah," Dean replies. He peers up at the tree and begins to understand why Castiel wants to decorate for Christmas.

"I have no powers anymore. I never could create stars even when I had powers." He shrugs but Dean sees emotion in his profile. "This is all I can do for the fallen. Each one of these stars is for one of my brothers or sisters who didn't survive Metatron's ejection."

"Cas..." The hunter grips the angel tight around his shoulders.

Blue eyes turn to his and something unspoken passes between them - a plea to forgive himself - yet neither seems to know how to do that. The two of them have been beating themselves up for far too long, living on when their loved ones crumble away and exist only in memorial after memorial. But they always find each other again through the most impossible odds. Dean understands what he's feeling. They link arms around each other's backs and squeeze tight.

"We'll put 'em up every year," Dean decides.

"You mean... you want me to stay?"

It doesn't occur to Dean until that moment, that simple question beneath the half-completed Christmas tree. Castiel still sees himself as a guest. He thinks he'll be kicked out at some point soon. "We suck apart, you know? No way are you going anywhere. You're home, Cas."

A faint smile lifts Castiel's mouth and the pain in his eyes gives way to something more hopeful. "I have extra stars," he says with the weight of the moment. "Let me make remembrance stars for your parents. For Bobby and ... for Kevin."

"Y-yeah," answers Dean, something heavy in his throat. He tries again. "Yeah. Let's finish this tree."


End file.
